After an intriguing conversation via Facebook comments regarding the introverted-churchgoer book I just finished, a friend of mine posted a link to a blog post reviewing a book called Deliver Us from Me-Ville. (It was not something he’d written, but it was relevant to the discussion.) Part of the post read:
I remember when Dave started his Loud Time blog, and I thought it was a cool name and idea, as an alternative to evangelical quiet time. He said something about how Christian spirituality tends to prioritize the contemplative introvert who encounters God in solitude and silence, leaving extroverts at a loss as to how to connect with God in ways that fit them.
So, while in some of the Christian circles I move in it’s de rigueur to lift your hands during corporate worship and otherwise manifest your spirituality in groups, in other Christian circles it’s more respectable to be the silent prayer warrior and hermit-like meditative person.
In other words, extroverts have their own moments of discomfort in church. And for them it also feels like whatever they’re struggling with is a requisite to being a Christian.
Here we’re finding that the very things we struggle with are those things we also perceive to be inherently edifying to one’s spirit. The problem here may be one of perception, moreso than of fact. Is it possible?
Is it just the desire to conform that makes both introverts and extroverts feel spiritually disconnected? But we should realize that it’s possible to worship in different ways and yet be at comparable levels of spiritual growth and maturity.
Now I think I’ll return to my journaling. Or sleeping… it’s late!
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